Wondering about the SWTOR Subscription Benefits? Let me tell you more about the ups and downs of paying Bioware money to play this MMO Game
What will SWTOR Subscription give you
Is the SWTOR Subscription worth it? A SWTOR Subscriber receives significant benefits compared to a Free-to-Play (F2P) and/or Preferred Player. Things like maximum number of crew skills available, unlimited access to all gameplay features and story content, no limits on resources, freedom to earn and equip the top EndGame gear, quicker and more fluid leveling experience and more.
Free-to-Play is the status you start the game with if you have just downloaded it. It is more of an extended demo of the game.
You can freely play the story up to level 60
If you are interested in only playing the origin class stories, you can do them without spending a dime.
With the release of Game Update 6.0 and the digital expansion Onslaught BioWare changed the free-to-play level cap from 50 to 60. You can now play through the first two expansions (Rise of the Hutt Cartel and Shadow of Revan) of the game for free.
Limitations to F2P and Preferred
While the stories will be unlocked, you will still feel the limitations in every other aspect. You will have a very limited number of character slots per server. Your characters will not be able to operate with the full amount of the credits you earn. On top of that you will have access to fewer toolbars to slot your abilities and usable items.
As soon as you purchase something from the In-Game Cartel Store or subscribe to the game and let your subscription expire, you become a Preferred player. This is the middle tier. While still limiting, it is far better and easier on the restrictions. The minimum money you have to spend to enter this status is $5.
With the release of 6.0 some of the restrictions have been eased or completely lifted. You can have at any given point in time a total of 350 000 credits as F2P player. If you are preferred status, you will be able to hold up to a million credits.
A subscriber has access to a total of six toolbars (aka hotbars). F2P has only access to three and Preferred to five.
In the past you were not able to fast-travel or revive yourself as F2P and Preferred player without purchasing the consumables for that. After 6.0 these restrictions were removed and everyone can now navigate the universe easier and faster.
Once you subscribe to SWTOR, however, you get to experience the game the way its developers and designers have meant for it to be played.
The SWTOR Monthly subscription is worth around $15 and if you catch it on a deal or promotion, it could be much lower. My current plan is ~$13 per month as I subscribe for 6 months at a time.
And now that SWTOR is on Steam, you can purchase additional Steam Bundles with cosmetics there as well as get your Subscription and Cartel Coins directly from Steam if this is more convenient to you. The prices are the same.
The effect of your first Subscription to SWTOR
Your First Subscription to Star Wars: The Old Republic will grant you full access to all of the story content released to date.
Even if you drop your status to Preferred (one level below Subscriber), you will keep your created characters and the full access to all new planets and regions.
Other restrictions may apply, though, such as limited or no access to group content, limited inventory space, limited or no access to certain high level gear and more.
You first Subscription will allow you to see the game the way it was originally meant to be played by the developers.
SWTOR launched in December 2011 as a regular Subscription-based MMORPG. It adopted the Free-to-play (F2P) model in 2012.
On some websites, such as the official EA-owned sites and pages, you may see the term Premium Player. This is is nothing else but a Subscriber. For some reason the company decided a few years ago to replace Subscriber with the more fancy Premium Player. There is no other difference than the spelling, be sure of that! :)
If you are a brand new player, these 2 guides will be of use to you:
How to choose between one month or recurring subscription
If you Subscribe to the game once, that will allow you to have access forever (yes, even after the subscription expires) to all stories and expansions that are currently available (without the future ones, of course).
Considering that 4.0 Fallen Empire + 5.0 Eternal Throne + Onslaught were worth a lot more than the $15 when they were released, I’d say it’s a great deal.
If you enjoy the game in Subscriber mode, you can just put it to a recurring monthly plan. Once you pay and your status changes InGame, you can cancel it and you will still have your remaining days to play before your status changes back to Preferred.
Once you Subscribe to the game, you will never go back to F2P, but be switched to Preferred status, which is a lot better and has fewer limitations. The Preferred status can also be obtained if you purchase something from the InGame Cartel Market (the store) that’s worth $5 or more.
Currently the state of the game is suggesting that if you are a casual player, a 1 month Sub followed by Preferred status gameplay experience might be best for you. If you enjoy the EndGame, keep reading below to understand why is it important to be subscribed on monthly basis.
I’d like to extend a warning. Your experience in SWTOR as a Subscriber (Premium Player) will differ a lot and you may never want to play the game with the restrictions of Preferred again after that.
Should you Subscribe to SWTOR and why
The game offers a large world available for exploration for free. Yes, there are tons and tons of limitations, but let’s face it – if you are just launching the game now, you would have no clue how limiting all of it is.
The constant prompts to spend Cartel Coins to unlock this and that should not bother those who have experience playing other F2P MMO games as the situation is similar everywhere. They all tell you that spending money on the InGame shop or purchasing a monthly subscription is better. And it is… for the company that develops the game. But is it better for you?
SWTOR offers all the 8 origin class stories FOR FREE. That’s roughly 30 to 50 hours of gameplay per story. Maybe even longer, duration may vary based on your approach and past experience.
If you are going to play it just for the story and the personal Star Wars adventure or experience, you need no Subscription! At all!
It will be slower, you will not be allowed to have a lot of money, 6 toolbars, your looks and outfit options will be somewhat limited, you will not be allowed to wear the most powerful gear (you don’t need it for questing either).
If you are more serious about progression – character development, EndGame PvE and/or PvP, achievements, rewards, collecting pets and so on and so on, you should consider subscribing to the game.
The game does not offer much on the PvE EndGame front. BioWare adds fresh new content a few times per year. It’s not enough for the hardcore veteran players, but the game is quite old now and BioWare is very consistent if nothing else. In 2020 the new content so far has been almost completely missing.
There are plenty of PvE and PvP content opportunities for a new player or someone, who just subscribed for the first time in their SWTOR life.
I have a ton of guides that will help you through the process of gearing up. If you are interested, you can check out the Complete EndGame Gearing Guide or if you are into PvP, check out the Beginners Guide to EndGame PvP in SWTOR.
I would say if you have been away from the game for more than 11 months, you may want to Subscribe once.
If you are among those who played the game at launch and left it soon after – take a look, play F2P for a day or two, if you like it, Subscribe and experience all that you have missed the way Bioware meant for it to be played.
The changes made during all of these long years are far too many to even attempt and name them all.
This game was designed from the ground up with the thought of being a Subscription based MMO. After the F2P launch in 2012 Bioware made a lot of changes, but the good news is that even now, they still value their subscribers and do their best to offer benefits and bonuses. Just try SWTOR as F2P and you will see how different it feels. Almost like you are playing a different game.
The conclusion of Why Subscribe to SWTOR and is SWTOR Subscription worth it is the following:
- Subscribe monthly if you want fast progression, easier leveling, regular gameplay with no limitations.
- Subscribe once to unlock your story content all the way up to the current level cap and enjoy the narrative casually as you get to keep access to all planets and places after your sub expires.
- Do not Subscribe if you plan to play 1-2 hours a day and do not care about farming your gear and achievements.
So, what is your personal favorite? Do you subscribe – when, for how long, why, how?
